Bandits threatening to keep our daughters as wives – parents of Kaduna students

Parents of the remaining 29 students abducted from Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, Kaduna State, have revealed that bandits are threatening to kill the male students and get married to their female colleagues.

Daily Trust reports that 39 students were abducted from their college dormitories on March 11, 2020, but 10 of the students – seven male and three females – were released last week.

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The kidnappers had demanded a N500 million ransom from the Kaduna State government but Governor Nasir El-Rufai vowed that his administration will not negotiate with bandits.

He also threatened that those who negotiate on behalf of the government would be prosecuted.

When the government stood its ground, the bandits began reaching out to parents of the remaining students to demand ransom following which 10 persons were freed.

At a press conference in the school premises on Friday, the parents urged Nigerians to help raise funds for them to rescue their children.

They said they were not afraid of arrest and prosecution by the Kaduna State Government as long as their children will be freed.

The Secretary of the parent’s union, Friday Sanni who spoke on behalf of others said as parents, they have no choice but to pay the ransom for the release of their children.

“We are calling on Nigerians, non-governmental organisations, charity organisations and donors to come to our aid in donating to rescuer our children. We don’t know what is happening to them, the bandits have threatened to kill our children if we play with them.

“The other time they said the will marry the female and kill the men and that a time will come when even if we bring the money, the money will not be useful,” he said.

Sanni said since government has claimed that security agents recovered the two batches of 10 students earlier released, “let them do same to our remaining children.”

“The government has said any parent who negotiates with the bandits will be prosecuted but most of the parents are already arrested emotionally, our children today are faced with AK 47 guns on them. The faith of our children is what we don’t know, they have spent 36 days without clothing, food, clean drinking water or bathing,” he said.